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When one is addicted to gambling then he is more likely to be suffering from a condition called gambling addiction or problem gambling. It is a kind of behavior which causes different kinds of disruptions in various areas of life: social, psychological, physical or vocational. Compulsive or pathological gambling is a level of addiction which is characterized by expanding preoccupation with different sorts of gambling acts. It also denotes the frequent need to place more money as bet, irritability or restlessness when trying to stop chasing losses and control loss which is usually shown by continual gambling behavior despite the mounting, negative and serious consequences.

Gambling in Canada

In the country, gambling operations are exclusively under the control of territorial and provincial governments. Gaming is considered the country’s largest entertainment industry. In terms of size, gaming is similar to combined recorded music, professional sports and TV. This industry supports more than 135,000 fulltime jobs and over 267,000 overall total jobs. Gaming is also known as 15-billion-dollar industry in the country.

The growth and expansion of gaming are caused by the continuous increase in slot machines and in 2006 to 2007 alone, about 70.7% of Canadians gambled. From this figure, 2.1% gambled online. The most popular gaming activities which are commonly played by adult gamblers include instant win tickets and lotteries. While online gambling has significantly increased during the past few years, it still proves to be the least common form of gambling problem in the country today.

Problem Gambling or Gambling Addiction in Canada

About 3.2% of Canadian adults are known to be affected by moderate to excessive problem gambling. This is like 3,200 out of 1000 Canadians are into this kind of behavioural problem. On the other hand, 2.2% of youth aged 15 to 24 years old are affected by moderate risk – that’s 2,200 for every 1,000 of Canadian youths that belong to this age bracket. Manitoba and Saskatchewan have the highest rates of moderate risk of problem gambling while New Brunswick and Quebec have the lowest rates in terms of gambling addiction or problem gambling.

Meetings for Gambling Addiction in Canada

In Canada, there are groups that conduct meetings to support spouses, close friends and families of compulsive gamblers. There are also groups which are composed of men and women fellowships that help each other in the recovery of their gambling addiction. When looking forward to joining a fellowship, the only requirement that you need to have is the desire to discontinue gambling. In most cases, there are no fees or dues involved in these groups.

Gambling Education and Prevention

Today, Canada has certain authorities that educate people about effective ways on how to stop gambling and how to prevent yourself from becoming a gambling addict. The Canadian Health Network, for example, comes with a section on youth gambling while certain authorities are intended for adult gambling addicts. With these solutions that are abundantly found in the country, gambling addiction among Canadians can be controlled easily and effectively the soonest possible time.